


Until You Believe Me

by kokarona



Series: The Swallowtail Series [3]
Category: Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, Naruto
Genre: Ableism, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Awkward Romance, F/M, Fluff, Homophobia, Implied Sexual Content, Jealousy, Mentions of Infertility, Misgendering, No Beta Reader Tonight We Die Like Men, Secret Relationship, Single parenthood, Transphobia, Unrequited Love, Valentine's Day, body image issues, clan dynamics, insecure love interest
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:27:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,371
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28298958
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kokarona/pseuds/kokarona
Summary: Lee just wants to have a nice date for Valentine's Day. Is that really too much to ask?
Relationships: Aburame Shino/Rock Lee
Series: The Swallowtail Series [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/935355
Comments: 11
Kudos: 33





	1. A Proposal

**Author's Note:**

> Well I guess I'm making a third installment after all. Initially, my plan for continuing the Swallowtail series was this edgy thriller story about Shino protecting Mitsuki from Orochimaru. But 2020 has sucked, so I don’t want to write about suffering children or artificial plagues for obvious reasons. Instead I’m going to write character development and fluff. 
> 
> The content rating may go up later just to be safe, but it's not going to be pornographic or anything. I am physically incapable of writing smut. Luckily this is A03, so people who want explicit Naruto content have plenty of other options.

Today was going to be a good day. A great day. The best day. As long as Lee kept reassuring himself of that, it would come true.

The weather was pleasantly brisk, warm enough that he only needed a light jacket. It hadn’t snowed at all this month (Shino was probably happy about that), so the streets were dry. Lee jogged along Market Street, enjoying each puff of breath as it blew back and warmed his face. The knit cap on his head made sure that his hair didn’t blow out of place. Some pedestrians stared and pointed at the “strange guy working out in this weather,” but Lee ignored them and made a point to appreciate the beautiful city around him.

Silver garlands hung from tree branches, glittering in the sun. Valentines Day balloons swayed in the wind, and the air smelled of sugar. Young couples were everywhere, strolling, snuggling, kissing. Everyone looked so happy.

He ran past a café holding a speed-dating event on its patio. The store next to it advertised a couple’s discount on mattresses, and the toy store after that had a pile of teddy bears in the window. Lee bought Ritsu one of those bears once. It was white and had a little red heart sewn between its paws. She’d squealed when she opened the box and tackled him to the floor. She was one of the few people who could match him in enthusiasm like that.

Lee wished Ritsu was here jogging with him. His wife had always made his morning workouts fun, using her medical knowledge to explain what happened to each muscle during their exercise. Shikamaru had once warned him that marriage became “kind of a drag once you got used to each other,” but Lee was fairly certain that said more about Shikamaru than about marriage itself. Lee would have never taken Ritsu for granted, no matter how old they got.

He hoped she was having a good day, wherever she was.

He hoped she wouldn’t be mad at him for moving on.

Lee turned the corner and slowed down to a walk. There was a large crowd ahead, with people holding their phones above their heads and taking photos of...the hospital? No, it was the side of the hospital. Someone had cast a genjutsu between the first and second floor. Bubbly pink letters floated in the air facing the building. Lee turned the letters around in his head to read, “Hanako, will you marry me???”

A twenty-something man with a fade haircut held his hands in the air to keep the genjutsu going. A dozen nurses could be seen in the hospital windows, grabbing each other and squealing. Any one of them could be Hanako, judging by their enthusiasm.

Lee smiled. It was truly amazing, what this holiday could inspire people to do. He was a little jealous, to be honest. If Lee could do jutsu, he would have loved to do a proposal like that. He didn’t like the young man’s haircut (it was really a shame to shave so much hair off his head), but he acknowledged the stranger as a fellow romantic.

“Lee!” a familiar voice called out behind him. Sakura jogged toward him with a grin on her face. She wore a red felt coat and white pants, similar to the outfit she wore as a teenager. A large, expensive-looking purse bounced on her hip as she moved.

Just the sight of an old friend made Lee’s heart grow warmer. “Sakura! I haven’t seen you in ages!” Lee wrapped her in a tight, no-holds-barred hug. She might have appeared small and delicate, but Lee knew she could handle it. Sakura squeaked when he lifted her off the ground, then laughed and hugged him back.

When he set her down, her hands lingered on his upper arms and her cheeks were flushed. (Maybe he hugged her too tight after all?) She tucked her hair behind her ear and said, “It’s good to see you too Lee. Sorry I haven’t been around lately. I’ve been so busy with work.”

Lee stepped out of the way. “Oh, well don’t let me keep you. I certainly wouldn’t want anyone’s treatment to be delayed on my account.”

“Oh don’t worry, I’m off. I have the whole day to myself,” she said with a wink.

“Sarada’s not with you?” Valentine’s Day fell on a weekend this year, so Lee would have assumed she was at home. Perhaps she was with Sasuke. He wasn’t entirely sure how Sakura and Sasuke’s custody arrangements worked.

“No. She’s decided she’s too old to spend Valentine’s Day with her mom. She and Choji’s girl are doing manicures, and then they’re supposed to go to Hinata’s house for some video game thing.” Sakura groaned. “I miss when she was a little kid. We’d spend Valentine’s Day making chocolate and watching movies, just the two of us. It was great.”

Her nostalgia was contagious. Lee found himself remembering Metal’s younger years. “I know what you mean. Metal and I used to make paper hearts to put around the house. We’d have contests to see who could make the most. I still have some in his keepsake box.” 

“Cute.” Sakura scanned the crowd around Lee. “So did you get ditched today too?”

“Ditched? No. I’m glad my son’s out today. It’s good for kids his age to have time to themselves.” That, and Lee had plans himself for later today, but he wasn’t about to tell Sakura that. 

“I know, but...” Sakura paused, biting her lower lip as she thought of her next words. “Don’t you get lonely, being a single parent? Watching your kid move on without you?”

Lee scratched the back of his neck. Sakura sure was asking the difficult questions today, wasn’t she? “I do. There’s a part of me that wishes Metal would stay a toddler forever.” He pumped the air with his fist. “But that’s not in the spirit of youth! Youthfulness means being able to change and try new things! Kids can’t grow if they’re always in our shadow.”

“But it’s still hard, spending a holiday for couples by yourself.” She stepped closer, and Lee caught a whiff of peppermint perfume. “Valentine’s Day is meant to be spent with company.”

“I know. That’s why I let him go. I wouldn’t want Metal to waste this holiday worrying about me when he has a girlfriend out there waiting for him.” Lee couldn’t help but let a little pride slip into his voice. He might have been unpopular with girls as a kid, but his son certainly didn’t have that problem.

Sakura slapped her forehead. “Oh, right, I forgot your son has a girlfriend. Sarada said he’s dating, um, what’s her name...”

“Hako Kuroi. He says it’s their one-year anniversary, so first thing this morning he rushed out with a gift for her. They're supposed to spend the entire day together.” Lee didn’t even tell him to get a gift – Metal bought it all by himself. His boy was growing up so fast.

“Impressive. I guess Metal is growing up to be a gentleman like his father.”

Lee beamed. “I’m just guiding him the way Gai-sensei guided me.”

“Speaking of guys...” Sakura stood on her tiptoes to see over the crowd. “Who’s that man up there? I can’t read what his genjutsu says. Is he a street magician or something?”

“No, he’s just another passionate man grabbing life by the horns. His love for a woman named Hanako has inspired him to announce his love through performance art.”

Sakura’s nose wrinkled as if it had sniffed a bag of garlic. “Oh not this asshole again.”

Lee did a double take. It wasn’t like sweet-faced Sakura to cuss. She yelled, yes, but never cussed. “Do you know him?”

“I know of him. He’s in this on-and-off relationship with one of my interns. He’s delusional if he thinks she’s going to say yes.”

“Is he dangerous?” Lee subtly changed his stance. If someone was stalking a poor young nurse, it was his duty to intervene and protect her.

“No, no. Just in over his head.” Sakura leaned in to whisper, “Hanako’s a clan heiress.”

“Oh, like Shino or Sasuke?”

“No, her family’s more on the Inuzukas’ level,” Sakura confided in what Lee thought was a needlessly dismissive tone. “But what they lack in power they make up for in money. Eiji, on the other hand, is an Academy dropout and dirt poor. Hanako says he’s nice, but ‘nice’ isn’t enough by itself, you know?”

Her words felt like a punch to the gut. Lee knew Sakura wasn’t referring to him, but he was in love with her for so much of his youth that it was hard not to take personally. He had been her “nice” option back in the day. He hadn’t been attractive or clan-born like Sasuke. He hadn’t been talented or popular like Naruto. The only thing he had to offer her was his heart.

“No, it rarely is enough,” he murmured.

“Right? Proposing to her in public like this is just pressuring her and setting himself up for disappointment.” Sakura paused to wet her lips with chapstick. “As sad as it is, you have to recognize when someone’s out of your league.”

Nausea gripped Lee’s throat. “You would know, right?” he choked out.

Sakura made a quizzical frown, tilting her head as if she didn’t hear him quite right. “Excuse me?”

Lee mentally slapped himself. How could he talk to Sakura like that? She was just telling the truth. Plain-faced nobodies like him and this Eiji rarely got the girl. Ritsu had been a fluke. It wasn’t Sakura’s fault that Lee was...undesirable. It was ungentlemanly of him to get bitter over it.

He put on a cheerful face and backtracked. “Since you’re an Uchiha, I mean! You of all people know how hard it is to earn a place in a clan.”

Sakura made an uneasy laugh. “Oh! Right...”

“Ritsu and I were both clanless, so we didn’t have to worry about political stuff like that. Becoming nobility like you did is almost impossible. You should be proud!”

“I’m not nobility,” she sighed. “I have Sasuke’s name, and I live in his house, but that’s not the same thing as being part of his clan. I’ve raised Sarada from diapers by myself.” She smiled softly at him. “I’m basically a single parent. Like you.”

Now Lee felt doubly bad for his pettiness earlier. He knew how hard it could be to raise a child alone. “Well you’ve done an excellent job! Metal tells me Sarada’s the strongest in his class. And she’s always so polite when I see her.”

“Thank you Lee, but you’re missing my point.” She leaned forward, and her peppermint perfume prickled in his nose again. “Sasuke and I aren’t married. I’m by myself.” She spoke slowly, like she was explaining a complicated surgery step-by-step. “And so I was thinking of spending this little holiday of love with someone else. A man who understands my complicated circumstances.” Sakura winked. “What do you think?”

Suddenly it was all clear to Lee. “You’re going to that speed-dating event down the street.” He sandwiched Sakura’s tiny hands between his own. “I’m proud of you, Sakura. Truly, I am. I think this is a healthy choice.”

To be honest, a part of him felt bittersweet at seeing his childhood crush date yet another man, but an even larger part of him was relieved. If Sakura was moving on from the still-living Sasuke, then surely Ritsu would forgive Lee.

She yanked back her hands. “No, Lee! I’m asking about you!”

“Me?” Lee felt his heart grow even warmer. Sakura was trying to set him up for speed-dating? That was so thoughtful of her.

“Yes. I want to know if you’re interested,” she huffed.

“Oh, I can’t go,” Lee answered automatically. “I already have plans with...someone,” he corrected himself before saying too much. Curse him and his youthful habit of honesty!

Sakura’s eyes grew wide as dinner plates. “ _You_ have a date already? With who?”

“With...with Gai-sensei,” he lied. Lee could trust Gai-sensei to cover for him if Sakura got curious. “We’re strengthening our bond of manhood together with, uh...some therapeutic tandem yoga. We’re going to be quite busy with it. I don’t have time for anything else. I appreciate you worrying about me though.”

“Tandem...yoga...” Sakura stared at him blankly for a few seconds, then burst into laughter. “Oh Lee. If you were anyone else, I’d worry Gai had turned you gay.“

“Gay?” With Gai-sensei? The mere suggestion made Lee want to rip out his ears. Gai-sensei wasn’t his father (Lee had never been brave enough to call him such), but the idea of being intimate with him was repulsive. Lee felt filthy for even imagining it. “Sakura, I swear on youth itself, Gai and I have never had that kind of relationship.”

Sakura continued laughing. “I know, I know. Of course you’re straight, you have a kid.” She sighed, and in a long-suffering voice added, “I just have to accept that this is how you are.” She took her phone out of her purse and began scrolling.

“What is how I am?” asked Lee.

“Don’t worry about it. I’m going to check out that speed-dating thing you mentioned and pretend this conversation never happened.” She walked away, still scrolling through her phone.

“Okay...” Was she mad? Upset? Bored? He would never understand the mysteries of Sakura’s mind. “Good luck?” he ventured.

She chuckled to herself, then turned back and smiled at him. “You too, Lee. You too.”

#

Five miles and a hot shower later, Lee strolled through the Jade District under an avenue of leafless trees. He tugged at the collar of his button-up shirt. He wasn’t a big fan of cotton: it was warmer than spandex, true, but also much stiffer. He felt like he had resistance bands around his shoulders, preventing him from raising his arms too high. But even he knew that spandex was not appropriate date attire (Ritsu had drilled that into his head many times), so he would endure this shirt for one day.

Lee saw Shino before she saw him. She was wearing her white holiday jacket, the one with the silver beetles embroidered on the sleeves. It was hard to remember, but Lee was fairly certain she’d worn it last Valentine’s Day too. The glasses were new though. She’d replaced that immense metal visor with some light-refracting sunglasses with red lenses. Apparently they filtered light just as well as well as the visor did while being a fraction of the weight.

Lee would never criticize anyone’s clothing choices, but if he were being honest with himself, he was glad the visor was gone. Half of Aburames’ body language was spoken through their eyebrows, the subtle ways they arched or furrowed during a conversation. It was much easier to tell how Shino was feeling when he could see the top half of her face.

Case in point: Soon as Shino saw him, her thin, dark eyebrows jumped up in surprise, then tilted toward her temples in what he knew to be a look of affection. Her voice was soft but strong enough to carry across the street: “You’re early.”

“You’re even earlier than I am,” he answered. It was an unspoken contest between them to see who could get to their meetings first. She may have won this round, but Lee was not about to let himself be outdone today. He crossed the street, lifted his head up toward her ear, and whispered, “and you managed to look much lovelier too.”

Lee liked the way Shino blushed. It was rare that he could get her to do it, but when he did, it was a faint pink tinge that rose up her neck and to her ears, then circled around to her cheeks, so light that it could be mistaken for a reflection from her red glasses. She was always so composed, so graceful – it was satisfying to know that he was one of the few people who could get her flustered.

Her voice buzzed softly with embarrassment. “Always quick with the flattery, aren’t you?”

“When I see you, the compliments come easily,” he answered.

That line flustered Shino enough to actually make her cover her face. “Lee, I appreciate the effort, but we’re past the wooing stage. How long are you planning to keep up this hyperbolic courtship of yours?”

“Until you believe me,” he insisted with a smile. It really was a crime, what hiding had done to Shino’s self-image. One of these days Lee was going to convince her she was beautiful. Maybe today, if he could.

“I notice you’re dressed quite nicely as well,” she deflected. “Is that a new shirt?”

Lee laughed. “No, I’ve had this for years.” He’d bought it for a party celebrating the expansion of Tenten’s weapon shop. Lee’s mistake hit him a second later. “Oh, but it’s not too old! I wouldn’t wear something ancient. I just haven’t worn it much.”

His collar suddenly felt a little too tight. His shirt looked so cheap compared to Shino’s embroidered jacket. He should have bought something nicer if he was going to spend the day with a noble.

“I’m simply impressed that you own something that isn’t green,” she teased.

“It’s teal! It’s green-ish!”

The two bantered as they travelled down the street. They walked a foot apart, close enough to talk privately but not so close as to around suspicion. No one outside of the Aburames and Lady Nazari’s circle knew about their relationship (except Gai-sensei, of course). Lee hadn’t even told Metal yet, because...well, because it was a complicated situation.

Officially, Konoha’s records still listed Shino and every other Aburame as a man. Two so-called men caught doing romantic activities together would be labeled sexual deviants and probably lose their jobs. Lee would like to think that if he got to chance to sit Naruto down and explain their circumstances, his childhood friend would accept them with open arms (just like he accepted Sasuke and Gaara and every other social outcast he’d encountered). But as powerful as Naruto was, the Hokage couldn’t change laws by himself - his advisors and the Council of Elders also needed to approve the changes. Lee could not trust those people to be reasonable when many of them were the same officials who banished Lady Nazari, Izumo, and Kotetsu to the Crimson District.

When Lee and Shino first revealed their relationship, Lord Shibi and Lady Nazari had each taken Lee aside to explain the importance of hiding their romance. They’d made a list of Lee’s mannerisms that he should avoid doing in public from now on: no hugs, no poetry, no holiday gifts...he couldn’t even say the right pronouns. In many ways, Lee was forced to show less affection to his lover than anyone else he knew.

But of course he obeyed. Yes, he was an expressive man by nature, but he was also a ninja. It was almost insulting for people to suggest Lee couldn’t keep a secret, especially when Shino’s safety was at stake. Besides, there were other, less obvious ways to show his feelings.

Lee swung his arms wide in an exaggerated swagger. His rough knuckles brushed against Shino’s smooth ones, seemingly by accident. She flashed him a barely-there smile. A kikaichu flew from her sleeve and landed on Lee’s cheek. He wasn’t skilled at sensing chakra, but he could feel a prickling warmth as the kikaichu gifted him some chakra. It was how Aburames kissed each other when there were too many people around to use their lips.

They turned the corner and found themselves outside the Cabbage Patch. Lee could almost hear Ritsu scolding him for not taking Shino to a proper restaurant, but neither of Shino nor Lee liked rich food very much, and they both agreed that Akemi made the best cupcakes in the village. Through the window, Lee could see a few customers pacing in front of the pastry display. The shop wasn't as crowded as it got during the warmer months, but it was doing much better than it had last year.

They walked inside, causing the bell above the doorway to chime. Akemi waved from the cash register, then continued ringing up a young boy's cupcake order. Red-faced Giichi leaned out of his kitchen window. "Lee! Shino! Good to see you two! You want the usual?"

"Yes please," Shino answered.

They sat at their usual table by the window. Someone (likely Akemi) had crafted snowflake doilies from construction paper and plastered them across the glass, layering them on so thick that it was hard to see outside. Red heart balloons bobbed along the ceiling. The tablecloths were pink with green hearts on them to match the cabbage green of the walls. That was another reason why Lee loved this café: the owners knew how to decorate with enthusiasm.

A woman with a toddler strapped to her back came in the store. A gust of wind shoved the balloons toward the edges of the café, and one floated toward Lee's table. The string dangled in front of his face. "Oh, looks like we have a visitor," he joked to Shino.

The toddler reached her pudgy hand toward the balloon above them, grunting with effort. Her face crinkled in frustration, and everyone in the café braced themselves for tears. Lee got up to hand the balloon over when Shino stopped him. "I'll handle it," she murmured. A few bugs snuck out of her sleeve, flew up to the balloon, and pushed it in the baby's direction.

The toddler's excited squeal was probably even louder than the cries would have been. She grabbed the string and waved it around, sending the heart balloon into a seizure. Everyone in the café relaxed. The mother gave them both a grateful smile, then went to order some food. Lee turned back to his date and made a thumbs up. "Excellent aim, Shino. I give your bugs an A+!"

"Not a B?" She quipped back.

"No, no Bs for the beetles. Only As."

Her lips curved into a brief smile. "Speaking of As, I haven't asked you yet about your last A-rank mission to the Land of Waves. Metal told me you brought back a souvenir."

"Oh, he told you about the Wyrm Sword?"

"The Worm Sword?" she asked with a puzzled expression.

"No, Wyrm. Like the dragon," he explained. It was in his bedroom right now, hanging from a special shelf Tenten made for him. "One of the nobles there gave it to me as thanks. He says the blade is made from the spine of a giant eel."

"Really?"

Lee shrugged. "I wouldn't know. Tenten told me it's bone treated with some kind of hardening solution, but neither of us know enough about fish to tell what kind of bone it is. She also found this groove thing on the side she says is for hiding venom cartridges in."

Shino perked up. "What kind of venom?"

"I'm not sure. The cartridge had a lot of purplish stains in it, and the bone is rougher where the stains are."

"Probably Blister Hornet venom. Or Orbweaver venom. I'd be interested to see how corroded the bone is – there aren't many species that can make venom that acidic."

"I can show you later today once we get to my house," Lee offered.

Shino's eyebrows leapt up to her hairline. Her hive began humming loud enough for Lee to hear across the table. The faintest pink returned to her cheeks. Lee felt his own face growing warm as he realized what he'd just said. "Unless you think that's a bad time," he backtracked.

"Today's fine. I would...like to do that," Shino turned her head away, and Lee saw her ears pinker than he'd ever seen them. "If you think we have time."

Lunch at the Cabbage Patch was only the first part of their holiday plans. This afternoon, Shino and Lee had planned to visit the ice garden in the park. After that, they would go to warm up at Lee's currently empty house, where they...well, they hadn’t explicitly said what they would do. (It was obvious what he was asking for, wasn’t it? They’d been dating for nearly nine months already. But not saying it aloud gave either of them an easy way to back out if they lost their nerve.)

"Good! Well..." Lee would cross that metaphorical bridge when he came to it. If he worried about it too much, he might have issues later, so it was best to enjoy the present. "I also bought a keychain for Metal from that Kagemasa show. Have you heard of it?"

Shino visibly relaxed. "Yes, it's really popular in my class. My students quote it all the time..."

Giichi brought them their tofu and curry bowls. The delicious scent of curry was wonderfully distracting. Shino and Lee chatted about safe, pleasant nothings while the food warmed their stomachs.

Shino was almost finished with her bowl when her body stiffened. Lee swallowed his food and asked, "Is there a problem?"

"No, but there's about to be."

The café door jingled open again. A red-furred puppy trotted in, wagging its tail, followed by a much larger white dog and—oh no. Why was Kiba here?


	2. If Things Were Different

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long. My computer spontaneously died a few weeks ago, and it was apparently so old that it's virtually impossible to find replacement parts. This fic was supposed to be mostly done by now, but instead I leave you with the semi-angsty chapter. Fluff is coming, I promise.

Kiba stood in the doorway of the shop, hands relaxed behind his head. He wore his usual gray jacket with the mesh shirt that showed off his policeman's physique. He sniffed the air, turned in their direction, then formed a wide, toothy grin. "Shino! Lee!" He sauntered over to their table with the dogs trotting obediently after. "What are you two guys doing here?"

"Eating," Shino answered dryly. If Lee didn't know her as well as he did, he would have missed the subtle stiffness in her posture. If her old teammate noticed, he ignored it.

Kiba sniffed their mostly eaten bowls, then stuck out his tongue. "Ugh, smells healthy." He combed back his impressively thick hair with his fingers. "But really, you two are here for the same reason I'm here, right?"

Shino busied herself scratching Akamaru behind the ears. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Come on," Kiba drawled. He casually leaned his body weight onto Shino's shoulder, using her like an armrest. "Don't think I didn't notice your fancy jacket. And Lee's wearing a button-up! I didn't know you owned anything that wasn't spandex!"

Lee laughed nervously. "Well, I wanted to try something different today." He tried his best to ignore the way Kiba's hairy forearm brushed up against Shino's naked neck. The contact was making Shino blush slightly, but that was only because Kiba was interrupting their date. She wasn't turned on by hairy men, right? (Otherwise Lee was in trouble, because he was rather lacking in that department.) Kiba was physically affectionate with everyone, especially his teammates. This didn't mean anything. Everything was fine.

"Don't act so innocent," Kiba laughed. "The only you two would dress up outside of a school function is if you were trying to get laid."

"What?" Lee squawked. Kiba's accusation sucker-punched Lee out of his internal dialogue, sending him flying into a completely different conversation. His tongue stumbled over his response. "You...how...what?"

Shino's hive buzzed loudly enough that both Akamaru and Akemaru perked their ears. "Excuse me?" she asked, her tone making it clear that she was not the one who needed an excuse for their behavior.

Kiba removed his arm from her shoulder and stepped away. He scratched the back of his neck nervously. "Wait, you aren't here for the LoveBomb event?"

"I don't know what that is," Lee answered.

"Seriously? There were ads all over Ninstagram. They had this speed-dating event this morning down on 45th Street, and now they're doing an afternoon round here."

"Oh.” 45th Street was by the hospital, wasn’t it? “I think I saw that on my morning jog.”

"You should've joined us! There were a lot of babes there." Kiba ribbed Lee with his elbow and said in a not-so quiet whisper, "Including a certain pink-haired friend of ours."

"You met Sakura at the speed dating event?" Lee wasn't sure how to feel about that. Maybe a little envious (guys like Kiba really did have all the luck when it came to love). But mostly he felt confused, because Kiba was one of the few men who _hadn't_ had a crush on Sakura when they were kids. 

Kiba held up his hands. "Don't worry, I didn't pair up with her. I wouldn't sabotage you like that. But if you feel like 'reliving your youth,' she's going to be here in half an hour."

Shino bristled. "Don't you already have a girlfriend, Kiba?"

Kiba winced and hunched his shoulders, making him look just like a dog with his tail between his legs. "Ah...well...Tamaki and I...broke up."

"She dumped you?"

"No! No, no, no, it was mutual. If anything, I dumped her! Ha ha...ha..."

Lee was not terribly fluent in dog body language, but the way Akamaru and Akemaru were shaking their heads told him Kiba was probably lying. "What were you fighting about?"

"Oh, typical couple stuff, you know..."

"No, we don't know. That's why we're asking," said Shino. She pulled up a spare chair nearby and motioned for Kiba to sit.

"Smartass," Kiba muttered, but he took the chair anyway. "Well, since Hana's test showed she can't have kids, Ma's put it into Tamaki's head that she needs grandchildren or the clan will be doomed.”

Shino’s eyebrows fell into a concerned slouch. “But the Inuzuka’s techniques aren’t a bloodline limit like the Byakugan. Can’t Hana simply adopt an heir?”

"She was gonna, but Ma says it’s not the same as passing on the clan to a ‘real’ grandkid. Now she and Tamaki have ganged up on me, saying I need to 'be a man' and 'get married already.' I told them I didn't see the point of a wedding-"

"Don't see the point?" Lee shouted. Lee had always dreamed of a big, dramatic wedding, but he'd been forced to elope with Ritsu to hide her connection to the Crimson District. For a man to be able to wed his partner in public and refuse - it was an insult to everyone involved. "Weddings are a celebration of true love. They're proof of your bond, your commitment!"

"I was already committed!" Kiba snapped back. "We lived together. We raised our dogs and cats together. I even put Tamaki in my will." He crossed his arms. "But that wasn't good enough. Now Tamaki wants a baby, even though I told her from the very beginning that I don't want kids."

Kiba gestured to Lee. "No offense to parents, but I'm a dog person, not a baby person. I'm never gonna be a dad."

"I understand." Shino patted Kiba's hands. "I'm sorry things ended up like this. You deserved better."

"Yeah..." Kiba puffed his chest. "Yeah, I do. That's why I'm here: to find a girl who's better than Tamaki in every way." He slapped the table. "You two should join me! You're already here and dressed up. We can be each other's wingmen!"

Shino's lips pursed together. "Kiba, I'm sorry, but we can't help you. Lee and I aren't suited for this event."

"Sure you are! Have faith in yourself!" Kiba patted Shino's shoulder. "Nobody here knows you have bugs inside you. They just see a tall dude with cool sunglasses. Women love tall guys."

Shino crossed her arms, curving her shoulders inward. Lee resisted the urge to hit Kiba upside the head. "Shino's not that tall, Kiba," he insisted. "You and I are simply short."

Kiba bristled. "I'm not short, I'm average!" He ribbed Shino. "Come on, man. We haven't hung out in forever."

"We just had tea at Kurenai's last week."

"That was Team 8 time. You and I need bro time. Pleeeaaase?" The dogs joined their pack leader and whined. Shino turned her head away, causing Kiba to sulk. "What are you and Lee doing that's more important than helping me out?"

“Uh...” Lee racked his head for as boring an excuse as possible. "Paperwork!" he answered. "Shino and I are meeting with the school board to set up weapon-cleaning regulations. We certainly wouldn't want to exclude you, but-"

Kiba physically recoiled. "Oh no, I became a cop so I could avoid those kinds of meetings." He made an exaggerated sigh and stood up from his chair. "I guess if old Iruka's expecting you, I can't complain," he told Shino, "but this conversation isn't over. One of these days, you and I are gonna go out to the bars, and I'll teach you how to get yourself a woman."

"I'm not doing that."

"You will. And you'll have fun too," Kiba promised. He waved goodbye and strut over to a busty red-haired woman by the pastry counter. The dogs trotted obediently behind. Hungry-eyed singles trickled into the café, analyzing their potential partners and rivals.

"Perhaps we should leave before the café gets too crowded," Lee suggested. Shino nodded, and they quickly slipped out the door.

#

They walked a foot apart down the road, an awkward silence lingering between them. Shino still had her arms crossed over her chest, and she lost a few inches height to a subconscious slouch. Her face was set in a stony blankness.

Lee hated seeing her like this, but he didn't know how to fix the mood. Honestly, how could Kiba call Shino 'bro' and 'dude' with a straight face? Did he not see the delicate shape of her face? The quiet, graceful flow of her movements? How could he hear Shino's regal, honey-sweet voice and call her anything but queen? (True, Lee hadn't noticed either, not at first, but he barely spoke with Shino back then. Kiba was her oldest friend. He had no excuse.)

If only Lee were a little taller – then Shino wouldn't have to feel so self-conscious about her height. He wanted to say, _'Lots of female supermodels are tall, you know,_ ' but she'd just say something like _'not this tall'_ or _'not with broad shoulders.'_ But there should be. Considering all of Lee's past attractions - Sakura, Ritsu, and Shino – there was definitely an appeal to athletic women. But how could he phrase that convincingly?

"You've saved me once again, it seems," Shino murmured.

"What?"

"Last year it was the angry P.T.A. This year it was Kiba and his quest for a rebound date." Shino adjusted her glassed. "You have a knack for rescuing me from unpleasant situations."

"I'm disappointed in Kiba," Lee admitted. "It was so rude of him to pressure you into joining the speed dating event like that. And after all the years he's been stringing poor Tamaki along, it really is selfish of him to refuse to marry her, don't you think?"

"Hmm...I'm not sure he's the selfish one here."

"You're defending him?" Lee hated the envy that leaked into his voice. Shino and Kiba were friends. Of course she'd take his side. But he kept remembering Kiba's arm on her shoulder, brushing against skin Lee wasn't allowed to touch, and it was hard not to take personally.

Shino shook her head. "No, he's definitely handling this wrong, but not for the reasons you think." She adjusted her glasses. "To understand Kiba's behavior, you have to understand his relationship with his father."

"I thought Kiba had a single mother."

"Exactly." A breeze rolled down the street, causing the naked tree branches above their heads to shiver. "Kiba's father abandoned his family when Kiba was around 6. Apparently he found a younger lover in the Crimson District."

"Really?" Lee didn't remember seeing any Inuzukas there. Then again, it wasn't as if he knew every single person in the district.

"That's what Lady Tsume says. Kiba and his father had been very close, but once his father left, they had no contact whatsoever. He never visited, never returned Kiba's letters, nothing. And although Kiba would never admit this, it's clear that rejection devastated him."

"Of course." Lee had a similar story. His mother had been a teenager when she got pregnant, and she’d been overwhelmed by the thought of raising a disabled child alone. So she'd dumped him on his grandmother's doorstep and never looked back. (Yes, Lee understood the ache of being left behind all too well.) "But wouldn't that make him more motivated to start a family of his own? To prove that he’s lovable?"

"That's what Akamaru is for," Shino answered. "Kiba's not afraid of the child hurting him. He's afraid of becoming his father and hurting the child."

"Ohhhh."

"Tamaki knows all of this. But instead of talking with him, she shamed him for having trauma. And now she's lost him." Shino made a frustrated _tsk_ noise with her tongue. "Just when I was starting to tolerate her too."

"You didn't like her?" Lee was surprised to hear Shino admit that. She was usually so patient with everyone.

"Never. Tamaki always crawled over Kiba like a cat - rubbing her breasts against him, sitting on his lap. It was a completely unladylike way to behave in public."

The two of them crossed a busy crosswalk. By the time they reached the other side, Shino's irritation had faded. "Sorry. That was petty of me. I of all people shouldn't be policing how women express themselves."

"No, it's completely understandable. Kiba's your friend. Of course you'd be mad on his behalf." 

"That was more jealousy than righteous anger," Shino answered bluntly.

"You’re jealous...of Kiba's girlfriend?" Lee felt a sudden flush of dread – the kind he got when he reached for a kunai and found his holster empty, or whenever his knee popped after a rough landing.

Shino tensed. “Not…I didn’t mean it like that. If Tamaki hadn’t flaunted her looks so often, I wouldn’t be resentful.”

“But are you? Jealous, I mean?”

Shino didn’t answer right away. They passed one shop, then two, before she whispered, “I said ‘was.’ Past tense.”

So Lee’s instincts had been right. Kiba had been Shino’s first love, not Lee. He had no right to be upset - after all, he had a whole marriage under his belt – but it was still a shock.

“It doesn’t matter,” Shino insisted. “Even if Tamaki hadn’t been in the picture, I couldn’t have said anything to Kiba.” Her shoulders hunched in even further than before. “Not with the way things are.”

“But if things were different? Would you want to…” Lee’s voice drifted off. He couldn’t bring himself to finish the question.

Shino’s mouth didn’t move. Her eyebrows did all the frowning for her. “Do you want to go back to the café and talk to Sakura?”

It hadn’t occurred to Lee how Kiba’s matchmaking attempt would sound to Shino. Part of him felt guilty for putting her in that position, but mostly he was relieved. He relaxed his shoulders and smiled. “No. I don’t have the slightest desire to do so.”

He still cared for Sakura, certainly. When you love someone, really love them, a fragment of that feeling always clings to your heart. But the kind of emotion you feel changes: sometimes to resentment, sometimes to yearning, but for Lee, it was a bittersweet nostalgia, nothing more.

“Precisely.” In a remorseful tone, Shino added, “I regret that you even had to ask that question.”

“No, I should apologize for asking. It was inappropriate for me to dig into your past like that.”

“You’re too nice,” she murmured. “Most people wouldn’t be so understanding.”

Lee grit his teeth. His stomach felt queasy again, and he wasn’t sure why. “Nice” was a compliment, after all.

Sakura’s words from this morning echoed in his head: “ _Nice isn’t enough by itself, you know?”_ Lee pushed her words out of his mind. He wasn’t dating Sakura right now, so her opinion didn’t matter.

Shino pointed to a blue and white sign by the sidewalk. “It seems we’re close to the ice garden.” She took a rectangular slip from her pocket. It had the location of the event and a QR code. “I think my printer ran out of ink while I was printing the ticket. It only printed the first three letters of my given name,” she mused.

“No, my name was shortened too. The ticket says I’m Roc, R-O-C.”

“They didn’t even give you a ‘k’?”

“No. I’ll show you.”

Lee stopped to open up his wallet. He flipped through a gym membership card, a receipt for biotin supplements, a rewards card at the Cabbage Patch… “Hold on.” He flipped through his wallet again. Then he checked his vest pockets, only to remember that he was wearing a button-up shirt. “Um…”

Shino, genius that she was, figured out the problem before he did. “You left it in your other clothes.”

“Haha, I guess I did! I’ll have to buy a replacement.” He zipped open the cash part of his wallet (Lee had lent his credit card to Metal for the day, so physical money was his only option). There was only a 1,000-yen note and several coins inside. Lee began to sweat. Why did he leave such a big tip at the café? He should have saved more of his money!

“I can pay for it,” Shino offered.

“Absolutely not! A gentleman should pay for a lady’s ticket, not the other way around!” Normally he and Shino paid for their own meals and such, but Lee was trying to impress his date today. He checked his trouser pockets just in case his past self had left change behind. “My apartment is twelve miles from here. If I run-”

Shino arched a quizzical eyebrow, and that was enough to change Lee’s mind. “No, I can’t leave you alone on Valentine’s Day. Maybe we can stop at the bank on 55th Street.”

“Lee, it’s fine. Tickets are only 4,000 yen each.”

That might not be much to a noble, but for someone from his background, it was a lot to waste. But what other choice did Lee have? “I’ll pay you back! Next time we go out, ask me, and if I forget I’ll walk a dozen laps around the city on my hands!”

Shino smiled ever-so-faintly at him. “I know. I trust you.” She resumed their trip to the park, and Lee followed. He was lucky to be dating someone so patient. Shino never blamed him for his clumsy moments. She just solved the problem and moved on. She really was impressive.

_“As sad as it is, you have to recognize when someone’s out of your league.”_

Once again, Sakura’s words hovered in his ear. Lee couldn’t dismiss them so easily this time. Shino was out of his league in most respects. She was smarter, taller, younger, more talented, and definitely better looking. Lee had superior taijutsu and an advantage in eyesight, but that still left things unbalanced.

He looked over at his date. Shino had her head craned back and was watching two squirrels racing along the tree branches above them. The wintery sunlight made her long, delicate neck look like a stretch of untouched snow. She exhaled, and Lee could see the breath travel up her throat and out her lips, blooming into a bouquet of steam.

Shino was already so lovely. If she were allowed to live openly as a woman, she would surely have a dozen admirers. If things were different…would Shino have been willing to date him? Or was she forced to settle for Lee because he was the only man who actually saw her?

He needed to offer more than “being nice.” Otherwise he was just taking advantage of Shino’s situation (and that really wasn’t nice at all). Their date may have gotten off to a rocky start, but Lee could still turn it around. He was going to make this the best Valentine’s Day ever for Shino, no matter what.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize to all Kiba/Tamaki shippers. I don't actually have anything against Tamaki - Shino's just biased.

**Author's Note:**

> Some of you are going to wonder why I've started this fic after Shino and Lee are already together instead of showing Shino coming out and them confessing to each other. I have a lot of reasons, but I don't know how to explain them without spoiling the ending, so you'll just have to trust me. I don't know if this little experiment will work out, but most of these choices are intentional.
> 
> Thank you to everyone who commented on my last installment even after it was finished. You all make the fanfiction world go round.


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